China's Lunar New Year: 'Dragon Baby' Boom Expected

Performers take part in a dragon dance in a night parade in Hong Kong Monday, Jan. 23, 2012, celebrating the start of the Chinese Lunar New Year. According to the Chinese zodiac, the year 2012 is called the Year of the Dragon. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

Dragon babies are expected to hit China in droves this year, but there won't be any scales, fire-breathing, or mythical creatures involved.

"Dragon babies" refers to children born under the Dragon sign of the Chinese Zodiac, according to an Associated Press report, and children born during the Year of the Dragon, which begins Jan. 23 in 2012, are believed to be blessed with luck and strength.

Bearing that in mind, much of Asia expects a spike in birth rates; according to the BBC, Hong Kong experienced a birth rate increase of 5 percent during the last Year of the Dragon in 2000. AP notes that the birth rate jumped from 1.5 births per woman in 1999 to 1.7 births per woman in Taiwan, a country where not even government-offered cash incentives have succeeded in significantly increasing the low birth rate.

And while parents want all the prosperity and good fortune they can get for their children, the "Dragon Babies" boom may lead to problems in Hong Kong, Reuters reports, as women flee mainland China's one-child policy for the administrative region. The Hong Kong Hospital Authority told Reuters that it saw more than twice the number of non-local mothers giving birth in emergency rooms in 2011 than in 2010 -- even though 2011 wasn't the Year of the Dragon.

According to the BBC, Xinhua state news agency reported that it expects a 5 percent increase in childbirths in 2012. AP notes that along with China and Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Macau all expect increased birth rates in 2012.

But the boom isn't expected to last past this year, as the following year of the snake will likely see a dropoff, according to the BBC.

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A large illuminated dragon is seen in Chinatown on January 22, 2011 in Singapore. Thousands of people converged on Chinatown to usher in the Year of the Water Dragon. For the Chinese, The Year of the Water Dragon is said to bring abundance, and good fortune. (Getty)

Fireworks explode in the air to celebrate Chinesee New Year on January 22, 2012 in Beijing, China. The Chinese Lunar New Year, known as the Spring Festival, is based on the Lunisolar Chinese calendar. It is celebrated from the first day of the first month of the lunar year and ends with the Lantern Festival on the fifteenth day. (Getty)

Chinese folk artists perform the lion dance at a temple fair to celebrate the Lunar New Year of Dragon on January 22, 2012 in Beijing, China. Falling on January 23 this year, the Chinese Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, which is based on the Lunisolar Chinese calendar, is celebrated from the first day of the first month of the lunar year and ends with Lantern Festival on the Fifteenth day. (Getty)

Chinese folk artists prepare to perform the dragon dance at a temple fair to celebrate the Lunar New Year of Dragon on January 22, 2012 in Beijing, China. (Getty)

Chinese young performers dressed in dragon costumes prepare to perform at a temple fair to celebrate the Lunar New Year of Dragon on January 22, 2012 in Beijing, China. (Getty)

Chinese folk artists perform a stilt dance at a temple fair to celebrate the Lunar New Year of Dragon on January 22, 2012 in Beijing, China. (Getty)

Chinese folk artists perform a stilt dance at a temple fair to celebrate the Lunar New Year of Dragon on January 22, 2012 in Beijing, China. (Getty)

Decorative red lanterns are hung on trees at a temple fair to celebrate the Lunar New Year of Dragon on January 22, 2012 in Beijing, China. (Getty)

Chinese folk artists prepare to perform at a temple fair to celebrate the Lunar New Year of Dragon on January 22, 2012 in Beijing, China. (Getty)

A Chinese young performer dressed in dragon costumes prepares to perform at a temple fair to celebrate the Lunar New Year of Dragon on January 22, 2012 in Beijing, China. (Getty)

In this photograph taken on January 22, 2012, members of the Indonesian lion dance troupe prepare for a performance inside a new shopping mall in Jakarta while lion dancers perform during Chinese New Year festivities. The Lunar new year is the most important holiday on the Chinese calendar. (Getty)

SINGAPORE - JANUARY 23: A woman prays to a Buddha deity at the Buddha Tooth Relic temple to welcome in the Chinese New Year on January 23, 2011 in Singapore. (Getty)

Filipinos perform a dragon dance in Chinatown to celebrate Chinese New Year in Manila on January 23, 2012. (Getty)

A woman burns incense sticks at a Buddhist temple in Denpasar, on the Hindu majority island of Bali on January 23, 2012, celebrating the Chinese Lunar New Year. (Getty)

Woman pray at a Buddhist temple in Denpasar, on the Hindu majority island of Bali on January 23, 2012, celebrating the Chinese Lunar New Year. (Getty)

An elderly Chinese woman attaches a blessing tablet with her wishes for the new year on the first day of the 'Year of the Dragon', at the Dongyue Temple in Beijing on January 23, 2012. (Getty)

An elderly Chinese man attaches a blessing tablet with his wishes for the new year on the first day of the 'Year of the Dragon', at the Dongyue Temple in Beijing on January 23, 2012. (Getty)

People perform with dolphins during an underwater theatre show celebreting Chinese New Year in the Ancol park in Jakarta on January 23, 2012. (Getty)

Members of the chinese community in India perform a lion dance as they celebrate the Chinese New Year in Kolkata, on January 23, 2012. (Getty)

Thousands of people visit a lantern festival to celebrate the Chinese New Year of the Dragon in Shanghai on January 23, 2012. (Getty)

Thousands of people visit a lantern festival to celebrate the Chinese New Year of the Dragon in Shanghai on January 23, 2012. (Getty)